Burundi's first democratically elected president was assassinated in
October 1993 after only 100 days in office, triggering widespread ethnic
violence between Hutu and Tutsi factions. Over 200,000 Burundians perished
during the conflict that spanned almost a dozen years. Hundreds of thousands
of Burundians were internally displaced or became refugees in neighboring
countries. An internationally brokered power-sharing agreement between the
Tutsi-dominated government and the Hutu rebels in 2003 paved the way for a
transition process that led to an integrated defense force, established a new
constitution in 2005, and elected a majority Hutu government in 2005. The new
government, led by President Pierre NKURUNZIZA, faces many challenges, particularly
from the country's last rebel group who remains outside of the peace process
and continue attacks in the western provinces of
Burundi.
Geography of Burundi
Location:
Central Africa, east of
Democratic
Republic of the Congo
Coordinates:
3 30 S, 30 00 E
Area:
total: 27,830 sq km water: 2,180 sq km land: 25,650 sq km
Area comparative:
slightly smaller than Maryland
Land boundaries:
total: 974 km border countries: Democratic Republic of the Congo 233 km, Rwanda
290 km, Tanzania 451 km
Coastline:
0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims:
none (landlocked)
Climate:
equatorial; high plateau with considerable altitude
variation (772 m to 2,670 m above sea level); average annual temperature
varies with altitude from 23 to 17 degrees centigrade but is generally
moderate as the average altitude is about 1,700 m; average annual rainfall
is about 150 cm; wet seasons from February to May and September to
November, and dry seasons from June to August and December to January
Terrain:
hilly and mountainous, dropping to a plateau in east,
some plains
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Lake Tanganyika
772 m highest point: Mount Heha 2,670 m
soil erosion as a result of overgrazing and the
expansion of agriculture into marginal lands; deforestation (little
forested land remains because of uncontrolled cutting of trees for fuel);
habitat loss threatens wildlife populations
Geography - note:
landlocked; straddles crest of the Nile-Congo watershed;
the Kagera, which drains into Lake Victoria, is the most remote headstream
of the White Nile
Population of
Burundi
Population:
8,090,068 note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the
effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life
expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth
rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than
would otherwise be expected (July 2006 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 46.3% (male 1,884,825/female
1,863,200) 15-64 years: 51.1% (male 2,051,451/female 2,082,017) 65 years and over: 2.6% (male 83,432/female 125,143)
Median age:
16.6 years
Growth rate:
3.7%
Infant mortality:
63.13 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 50.81 years male: 50.07 years female: 51.58 years
Total fertility rate:
6.55 children born/woman
Nationality:
noun: Burundian(s) adjective: Burundian
Ethnic groups:
Hutu (Bantu) 85%, Tutsi (Hamitic) 14%, Twa (Pygmy) 1%,
Europeans 3,000, South Asians 2,000
Religions:
Christian 67% (Roman Catholic 62%, Protestant 5%), indigenous
beliefs 23%, Muslim 10%
Languages:
Kirundi (official), French (official), Swahili (along
Lake Tanganyika and in the Bujumbura
area)
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 51.6% male: 58.5% female: 45.2%
Government
Country name:
long form: Republic
of Burundi local long form: Republika y'u
Burundi
former: Urundi
1 July 1962 (from UN trusteeship under Belgian
administration)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 1 July (1962)
Constitution:
13 March 1992; provided for establishment of a plural
political system; supplanted on 6 June 1998 by a Transitional Constitution
which enlarged the National Assembly and created two vice presidents
Legal system:
based on German and Belgian civil codes and customary
law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
NA years of age; universal adult
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Pierre NKURUNZIZA;
First Vice President Martin NDUWIMANA - Tutsi; Second Vice President Alice
NZOMUKUNDA - Hutu head of government: President Pierre NKURUNZIZA; First Vice
President Martin NDUWIMANA - Tutsi; Second Vice paresident Alice NZOMUKUNDA
- Hutu cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by president elections: the president is elected by popular vote to a five-year
term (eligible for a second term); note - the constitution adopted in
February 2005 permits the post-transition president to be elected by a
two-thirds majority of the parliament; vice presidents nominated by the
president, endorsed by parliament
Legislative branch:
bicameral Parliament or Parlement, consists of a
National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (minimum 100 seats - 60% Hutu and
40% Tutsi with at least 30% being women; additional seats appointed by a
National Independent Electoral Commission to ensure ethnic representation;
members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and a Senate
(54 seats; 34 by indirect vote to serve five year terms, with remaining
seats assigned to ethnic groups and former chiefs of state)
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; Constitutional Court;
Courts of Appeal (there are three in separate locations); Tribunals of
First Instance (17 at the province level and 123 small local tribunals)
Economy
Burundi
is
a landlocked, resource-poor country with an underdeveloped manufacturing
sector. The economy is predominantly agricultural with more than 90% of the
population dependent on subsistence agriculture. Economic growth depends on
coffee and tea exports, which account for 90% of foreign exchange earnings.
The ability to pay for imports, therefore, rests primarily on weather
conditions and international coffee and tea prices. The Tutsi minority, 14%
of the population, dominates the government and the coffee trade at the
expense of the Hutu majority, 85% of the population. An ethnic-based war that
lasted for over a decade resulted in more than 200,000 deaths, forced more
than 48,000 refugees into
Tanzania,
and displaced 140,000 others internally. Only one in two children go to
school, and approximately one in 10 adults has HIV/AIDS. Food, medicine, and
electricity remain in short supply. Political stability and the end of the
civil war have improved aid flows and economic activity has increased, but
underlying weaknesses - a high poverty rate, poor education rates, a weak
legal system, and low administrative capacity - risk undermining planned
economic reforms.
